Location :
Katipalla is the first parish in Mangalore Diocese dedicated to Infant Mary. The church is located near MRPL, 4 km from Surathkal.
The background :
The scenic beauty, roaring Arabian Sea, the calm cool Kulur river, the fertile coastal agrarian region was the peaceful living abode of thousands of people in the coastal Mangalore of south India preciously the Kulur-Panambur region, the present New Mangalore Port Trust.
The year 1964 was a year of tragedy (misfortune) to these people, a storm struck in the form of evacuation and to depart their century old fertile land to make way for the New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT).
Approximately 20000 acres of land was acquired for this mega project according to a rough estimate. Thousands of people were asked to leave their ancestral land, their only livelihood for centuries, their booming agricultural land and other belongings.
In the year 1964, the then Prime Minister, Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri laid the foundation stone for the all-weather, non-natural (man- made) Port in Mangalore, which was a landmark in the history of Mangalore.
Any national projects bring in regional and national development for which a portion of people have to forgo their land, house and property for the national interest.
This is what exactly happened to the people living here. They were asked to leave and move out to Katipalla, a land covered with lush green forests. Mostly these farming labourers were deprived of assets and became landless. They were now unemployed and to find their own livelihood elsewhere. The government allotted 12.5 cents of land with a meager compensation to rehabilitate themselves in Katipalla.
Among them were nearly two hundred Christian families settled here in Katipalla. It was a hard time for them. The qualified and skilled youth did not find job opportunities as today. Naturally, they migrated to the metro cities like Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai and some even to gulf countries in search of jobs. Though the government had earlier promised to provide employment for many but only a few were absorbed in the Project.
The children had to travel to Mangalore for their college education.
The basic needs like water, electricity, roads, schools, churches and temples were to be built. The catholic families were attending the Surathkal and Mukka parish for their spiritual needs with much difficulty. Under the able leadership and guidance of the then Bishop of Mangalore Rt.Rev.Dr. Basil S D‘Souza, a site was acquired from the government for the church building. The people came together and converted this stony hilly region and levelled it. They built a tent of bamboo and coconut palms to attend their spiritual and religious duties. The First Holy Mass was celebrated by Rev. Fr. Claudy D’Souza on 8th September, 1966 in this palm cottage.
In course of time, the Bishop gave permission to erect a church here in the year 1967. The foundation stone was laid by then Vicar General Monsignor William Louis on 8th Sept 1967 on the feast of the Nativity. Surathkal parish priest Rev. Fr.Charles Nazareth was the main celebrant at the Holy Mass. The new church was dedicated to ‘INFANT MARY’ and came to be called ‘INFANT MARY CHURCH’.
The construction work of the new church was started under the direction of the Bishop and with the initiatives of the Pezar parish priest Fr.Simon D’ Souza together with the Surathkal parish priest Fr.Charles Nazareth along with the active cooperation and support of the people.
A need was felt to name a suitable, dynamic, farsighted priest to shoulder the challenges and to meet the spiritual and material needs of the people. The Bishop found in the person of Fr. Peter S.Noronha to take up this herculean task and challenges, he arrived here as the Parochial Administrator on 15th May, 1968. It was under his able leadership the Katipalla Church made all round development. It was a hard time for him to work with the unemployed poor people facing problems of scarcity of water, electricity, school, roads, housing etc. With his unceasing efforts, the new church was inaugurated by the then Deputy Commissioner Shri Nage Gowda and blessed by the then Bishop Rt. Rev.Dr.Basil D‘ Souza on 8th September, 1968. It was a golden day for the people of Katipalla for a long cherished dream realized to meet their spiritual needs in their own vicinity, the new church – The Infant Mary Church.
Formation of New Parish :
With some parts of Kulur, Surathkal and Pezar parishes Katipalla became a parish on December 1, 1968 and Fr Peter S Noronha was appointed as the first parish priest.
For the socio-economic development of the people, Fr.Noronha started in Katipalla a Rehabilitation Social Service Centre (KRSS) in 1970. The government sanctioned 9.45 acres of land in favour of the society. Some people even donated their piece of land to the society. With the help of Caritas “the food for work” scheme was started. This generated employment for the unemployed. Under the project, construction of roads, clearing and leveling of the agricultural land, digging of wells, construction of houses and plantation of coconut and mango trees, cultivation of bananas, pineapple and paddy were encouraged by him.
The entire picture of Katipalla transformed. People started poultry at their own houses and marketed the products through the society. There was some progress in the socio-economic life of the people.
Eventually, the society was registered in 1972 under the government of India Act 1956. The poultry farming got a massive response from the public. Lush green paddy fields, high-breed banana plantations together with mango and pineapple plantations changed the scene of Katipalla - into a smiling green garden to the dismay of the neighborhood. The social activities further enhanced with the publicity of the articles in the newspapers, the radio talks and the interviews in the ‘Akashvani’ by Rev.Fr. Peter S. Noronha. The media contributed to the growth and publicity of the society’s activities not only in Katipalla but also in Karnataka as a whole for the benefit of the farming community. It was a centre full of activities for all the creed and castes. Rev. Fr. Noronha was well appreciated by all the communities irrespective of their religion.
Mr.B.D. Jatti visited Katipalla as a government representative and well appreciated the work done there. This gave a further boost and support to the centre’s work. Through the Health Centre, Medical camps and doctors visits were arranged to meet the health related requirements of the people.
It was a long awaited dream of the catholic community to have a convent here. The arrival of four sisters of Franciscan Sisters of St. Mary of Angels 26th April 1972 brought great joy and hope to the catholic community here. They were sheltered in a small house initially. Their main activities included running a health centre, Balavadi School and stitching classes for the women of this region. Sewing machines were provided with low interest rates by the welfare centre. It was a centre of beaming activities.
Wells were dug and pump sets were provided at a low interest rate to the farmers to irrigate their farm land. Health camps, cultural activities and sports were organized by the welfare society periodically.
On 20th October 1974, the Bishop of Mangalore Rt. Rev. Basil S D’Souza blessed and inaugurated the newly built church hall that became a centre for all the activities.
In order to acquire advanced knowledge in agriculture and farming, Fr. Noronha undertook a foreign trip for a year and upon returning, shared and trained the skills he acquired for the benefit of the farming community. During his absence, Fr. V.J. Selvi and Fr. Norbert Fernandes rendered their services here.
His abilities, leadership qualities, organizing skill, training methods and administrative system attracted the Bishop to nominate him to the high responsible position. He was appointed and elevated as the Director of Fr.Muller’s Hospital, Kankanady in the year 1978. Rev. Fr. Mark D’Sa came as the second Parish Priest.
It was a felt need of the parishioners to have a belfry. The efforts of Fr.Mark succeeded in mobilizing the needed funds for the project. Rev.Fr. Peter S. Noronha, the founder priest laid the foundation stone for the same on the feast of Nativity (8th September) in 1979. With the generous contribution of the donors the work was completed in the year 1980. The church bell was donated by Mr.Timothy D’ Souza, the businessman of Mumbai. His Lordship Bishop Rt. Rev.Basil S D’Souza blessed the belfry on 24th February, 1980.
After Fr. Mark D’Sa’s transfer, Fr. Remegius Aranha took over as the third parish priest of Katipalla on 6th May, 1980.
Building the grotto, the church compound, expansion of the church hall and the furniture for the church were the key projects undertaken by Fr. Aranha. He worked for the all-round development of the parish stressing the importance of spirituality and inculcating values among the youth.
Fr. Marian Pinto came as the 4th Parish Priest after the transfer of Fr. Remegius Aranha. As a deep and strict spiritualist, he was well appreciated by the young and the old. He was responsible for the painting of the church building and its maintenance. After serving for a period of two years he was transferred.
Fr. Simon D’Souza came as the 5th Parish Priest on 22nd May, 1986. Fr.Simon D’ Souza took on the developmental work of his predecessor. He reformed and reorganized the agriculture and farm work, building a bus-stand for the public at the main entrance gate, construction of a chapel in honour of St. Sebastian at Krishnapura in the land donated by Mr. Mark Sequeira in the year 1989. In spite of his busy activities, he found time for the spiritual needs of the catholic community. After rendering a dedicated service of 4 years, which was well appreciated by all, he was transferred to another parish.
Fr. Chales Louis was appointed as the 6th Parish Priest and took charge on 8th June, 1990. The people gave him a warm welcome. The church roof was in a dilapidated condition and needed a quick repair. There was an acute shortage of funds in the church. Finding no other means it was finally decided to dispose of a part of the church land for the repair work. The repair work was completed with the active cooperation and support of the parishioners. The govt. declared some financial aid to the starving church fund. The church compound wall was built and repaired with this fund. The church hall too was renovated and reshaped in memory of the silver jubilee of the church in the year 1993 and the hall was renamed as ‘Silver Jubilee Memorial Hall’. Sober in nature, smiling and simple in life, a devoted worker, Fr.Charles was a favourite of everyone in Katipalla.
Rev. Fr. Anthony Louis took over as the 8th Parish Priest in 1997. His main focus was the youth. A stage was built in the church compound for staging cultural programs. A flag post was erected with the help of the ICYM near the church. He renovated the church altar with marbles and granites and beautified it. The new altar was blessed by His Lordship Bishop Aloysius Paul D’ Souza on 31st October, 2001. For the benefit of the people some toilets were built on the left side of the church.
At that time, the Syrian Catholic brethren used to attend Infant Mary church for their spiritual needs. Their dream of having a separate place of worship was realized when the Katipalla church donated about 50 cents of land at a discounted price at Bala. Thus, the new Mary Matha Church was born on 26th May, 2004. This serves as a church to the community even today. Fr.Anthony Louis was transferred on 24th May, 2004 to his new parish.
The young, Energetic and dynamic Fr. Joseph Mascarenhas assumed the charge of the parish on 24th May, 2004 as the 9th Parish Priest. Within a short period of time, he visualized the local needs of the people. He rejuvenated the youth. He encouraged their organizations with varied activities. The women’s forum, self help association for the women were born during this time. The media plays a dominant role in today’s life. Realizing this importance he started the church bulletin called ‘Tharan’ in Konkani on 8th September, 2004. The first issue was released on 25th December, 2004. It was decided to publish this bulletin in three issues - Nativity, Christmas & Easter. He upgraded the sound system in the church. A computer found its place in the church office gifted by a donor.
Mr. Timothy D'Souza, a Mumbai based businessman donated the church arc at the entrance of the road. It was inaugurated by the Retired Teacher and educationist Mr. Domodar Shetty. Mrs. Rehna Banu, the local Corporator inaugurated the church circle and his Lordship the Bishop blessed the church ‘Dwara’.
The long awaited dream of having a school for the people of Katipalla attracted Fr. Joseph’s attention. Earlier, the proposal was dropped due to the lack of funds on several counts. After a prolonged discussion and review with the church administrative committee, it was decided ‘better late than never’ to start an English medium school for the church. A school committee was formed to work out the modalities. Nursery, LKG, UKG classes were started on 1st June, 2006 in the church hall. Thus, the dream of having a school attached to the church was realized. The school was named ‘Infant Mary School’. Nearly 70 students were enrolled in the first year itself. Fr. Joseph began the new school with a prayer service along with the teachers and parents. On the 12th June, 2006 the foundation stone was laid for the new school building by the founder priest Fr. Peter S. Noronha. Mr.Oscar Fernandes, the cabinet minister unveiled the name plate of the school and conveyed his well-wishes. The construction of the building work was started on 25th October, 2006 with the help of the donations of the parishioners and the people around Katipalla. Apart from the local donations, Fr. Joseph went to Mumbai and Dubai to raise funds for the school. It was a red letter day in the history of the parish on 20th May, 2006 when a new spacious present school building was formally ready for the next academic year. The unceasing efforts, determination, persistence, long vision and foresight made Fr.Joseph became an unforgettable part of Katipalla after Fr. Peter S. Noronha. He transferred to Ujire Parish after serving Katipalla parish for seven long years.
Rev. Fr. Alwyn D’ Cunha succeeded Fr.Joseph Mascarenhas as the 10th Parish priest in 2011.
No sooner than he arrived here, took a comprehensive survey of the parish that enabled him to plan for the future.
Some of the key areas the Fr. Alwyn worked were –
1. A qualitative and quantitative survey of the entire parish.
2. Night vigil on 1st Friday of every month.
3. Night vigil for the youth on 1st Saturday of every month.
4. Retreats and summer camps for students.
5. Celebration of parish feast. The whole show was run entirely by the parishioners.
6. Street play of Christmas tablo/skit enacted in and around Katipalla.
7. Picnics for the youth and other associations.
8. New modern sound system in the church and in the school.
9. Celebration of feast in a different style.
10. Introduction of new innovative methods in education - Efficient staff selection - upgraded their scales.
11. Introduction of computer classes.
12. Introduction of smart classes.
13. Expansion of the ground in front of the hall.
14. Leveling and expansion of the school ground.
15. Boundary wall.
16. Construction of the road to the school.
17. Garden work and plantation around school and church.
18. Introduction of the intercom system in the school.
19. Mass and communion for the old and sick.
20. Get together for the aged
21. Visits to the orphanage, old aged and cancer center
Fr. Alwyn E D'Cunha was transferred and Fr. Andrew D'Souza took charge of the parish in 2018. During his tenure, the church celebrated the Golden Jubilee.
Golden Jubilee Celebration of Infant Mary Church :
The Golden Jubilee Celebration of Infant Mary Church was held on 3rd December 2018 . The Mass was celebrated by Most Rev. Dr. Peter Paul Saldanha, Bishop of Mangalore at 5.00 p.m. The Parish Priest Fr Andrew D’Souza, Vicar Vara of Surathkal Deanery Very Rev Fr Paul Pinto, the Parish Priests who served this Parish and others were present. The religious sisters too attended.
Two plants were planted in memory of the Jubilee called Jubilee tree and another in memory of Bishops Episcopal ordination called Laudato Si.
During the stage programme all the Parish Priests who served this parish, Vice Presidents, Secretaries and the Gurkars were honoured.
Mr Bharath Shetty, MLA Mangaluru was the chief guest who was honoured on behalf of the Christian Community of Katipalla.
The President, Bishop Peter Paul Saldanha was honoured by the Parishioners of Katipalla on the occasion of being elected the Bishop of Mangalore.
Very Rev Fr Paul Pinto , Rev Fr Andrew D’Souza and others were present. The programme concluded with dinner.
Fr. Andrew D'Souza was transferred in 2019 and Fr. Valerian Lewis took charge of the parish. But Fr. Valerian Lewis left for heavenly abode on 21st Nov 2021. Fr. Joachim Fernandes served the parish for the remaining term as parochial administrator. Fr. Santhosh Lobo later took charge of the parish on 21st May 2022.
Parish Priests who have served the parish since its inception :
- Fr Peter Salvadore Noronha (1968 - 1978)
- Fr. Mark D’Sa (1978 - 6th May 1980)
- Fr. Remedios Aranha (from 6th May 1980 - ...)
- Fr. Marian Pinto (... - upto 22nd May 1986)
- Fr. Simon D’Souza (22nd May 1986 - 8th June 1990)
- Fr. Chales Louis (8th June 1990 - 1997)
- Fr. Anthony Louis (1997 - 24th May 2004)
- Fr. Joseph Mascarenhas (24th May 2004 - 2011)
- Fr. Alwyn Edward D'Cunha (2011 - 2018)
- Fr. Andrew D'Souza (2018 - 2019)
- Fr. Valerian Lewis (2019 - 21st Nov 2021 till his death)
- Fr. Joachim Fernandes (Paroch. Adm. till 21st May 2022)
- Fr. Santhosh Lobo (from 21st May 2022 onwards)
(complete list will be published soon)
Compiled by Catholic Time Staff with inputs from Facebook page of the parish (facebook.com/infantmarykatipalla)
Last updated in May 2022.
Related links :
.png)
.png)
.png)